Faded
by WendyRose
Summary: She never wanted to run into him. She just wanted to get the job done and go home. (AU)


**A/N:**

So this is the first time I've posted one of my stories online. Kinda nervous, kinda excited. I hope you all enjoy, and thanks for checking this out!

-Insert disclaimer here-

* * *

 _Run, Run, Run..._

"I can't believe this." she huffed, gritting her teeth while quickening her pace through the heavily candied area. "Everything woulda been golden if he-"

She suddenly lurched forward, her foot having been caught on an uplifted tree root, and fell into a painful heap on the forest floor. The girl growled in frustration, then slowly lifted her head a little off the ground. _Seriously? Come on!_ Cursing her rotten luck, she heaved herself up in a rush and started moving swiftly through the sickeningly sweet 'woods' once again.

 _Why was_ he _there? They said he wouldn't be!_ She hastily wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, removing what she assumed was sugary dirt. She grimaced. _Gonna Need a shower._

She heard yelling a little ways off, and tried to will her legs to move faster. With her heart pounding like a drum in her ears, she dodged trees and their roots, she ran for what felt like an hour, but it was probably no more than 15 minutes. Looking back over her shoulder all she could see was darkness encompassing the forest.

Feeling like she ran far enough away to avoid her assailants, she slowed to a jog, ducking behind a tree trunk large enough to hide two of her. She leaned her back against the trunk with a soft thud. After a minute of trying to catch her breath, she kneeled to the ground, pulled her backpack off of her shoulders, and opened the top latch. She dug her hand in, quickly searching for the item that was causing her this great deal of trouble.

What she pulled out of her old bag was a beautiful, shimmering ruby that fit snugly in her palm. It was cool to the touch, a deep blood red, and mesmerizing to look at. Gorgeous as it was, there was nothing special about it. No magic - at least, she didn't sense any.

"All this trouble for a stupid ruby! I knew I should've taken another job." She hissed out, barely above a whisper. The girl shook her head, gently squeezing the object of her anger before she stored the ruby in her bag, and swung the material back over her shoulder.

 _That dumb-butt con artist better start praying to Glob._ She thought with a scowl. The girl was hungry, tired, sweaty, and pissed off. _He is sooo gonna owe me._

The girl stood back up and carefully peeked around the striped, cotton candy tree. _Coast looks clear... Now I just have to get out of this sticky forest and I'm home free... sorta._

Sighing tiredly, she turned around to begin running again but instead was met with the tip of a sword inches away from her nose. The girl's eyes widened in panic. _Crud, Crud, Crud!_ Her eyes gradually trailed up the length of the sword to the person holding it.

He was wearing what seemed to be a skinned polar bear head over his own. The mouth of the bear was gaping wide open, almost as if it was ready to let out a large roar, had it still been alive. The boy's face was nearly visible inside the giant maw, and as he stepped into the dim moonlight she caught the view of his striking blue eyes.

"Jake, I found her! She's over here!" the young man shouted, never looking away from the thief.

"Stealing from the Candy Castle, especially while I'm there? Pretty dumb move on your part." He narrowed his gaze upon her, assessing her every twitch.

She quickly swallowed the lump in her throat and glared at the sword-wielding adventurer in front of her. "Yeah well, I was told you weren't going to be there." She just wanted to go home. A confrontation wasn't a part of her plans, and certainly not with this guy. _Get in, Get out. That was supposed to be it._ With a bit of agitation, she blew a small lock of hair from her face.

"Bad informant." Finn said, almost smirking.

 _No kidding..._ She eyed the sword in front of her face, then looked back at the "hero". "Could you maybe lower that thing? I know when I've been had. I'm not gonna run, and I clearly don't have any weapons on me." She gestured to her simple outfit of a large parka, baggy white shirt, black leggings, and worn combat boots.

Finn gave her a considering look, and said sternly, "Your bag," pausing for a second, then continuing, "that's where you're keeping the ruby, right? Take it out slowly. No funny business." He then lowered his sword without lowering his guard.

She let out a breath of relief, comforted by that fact that there was no longer a deadly weapon pointed at her. "No funny business." She repeated and nodded her head in understanding. She gently tugged at the straps of her red backpack, shrugging it off her shoulders, and brought it to rest in her arms in front of her chest.

Finn kept a close eye on the mysterious girl in front of him. _Why go through all this trouble to steal just one gem?_ He wondered, studying her.

From the low light of the moon shining through the treetops, he could see that she had a moderately petite frame, brown hair, and almond shaped eyes. Possibly brown as well. It was too dark to see much else. Finn squinted his eyes a tad. _She doesn't seem like much of a threat, but..._

Before she opened the latch on her bag, he asked, "What's your name?"

Her eyes widened a fraction at the question, not really expecting it. Pausing her actions, she gazed up at the young man no older than nineteen standing before her. His face had softened, and she noticed his voice held a hint of genuine curiosity.

Her mouth curved into a small smile. "Shadow… People call me Shadow."

Finn almost returned the smile but remembered the situation they were in and quickly hardened his features. Then he was hit with a strange feeling of familiarity. _Shadow? I've heard that name before. Where have I heard that name?_ Finn furrowed his brows, cocking his head to the side in thought.

Shadow looked down once again and continued to unlatch her bag. _Gotta make this sound convincing..._ Stuffing her hand inside the old, tattered thing, she began rummaging around as if she couldn't find it.

After a minute, she feigned a look of concern and frustration. "It should be in here somewhere." She stubbornly huffed. Digging her limb in further, nearly elbow deep. Her messy hair covered her face, hiding her quick glance at Finn. _C'mon, take the bait._

He looked mildly surprised. _Did she drop it during the chase?_ Curiosity getting the best of him, he warily leaned forward, wanting to see inside the bag himself.

Noticing he was getting closer, Shadow quickly chimed, "Ah! Here it is!" She grinned, and slowly began to remove her arm.

Finn was taken aback when he saw a thick, menacing dark blue fog had started to consume her entire arm, continuing to spread out to the rest of her body.

She met his eyes with a look triumph on her face. _Gotcha!_

He realized his jaw had dropped and quickly snapped his mouth shut. His face immediately changed to one of focused anger. Finn raised his sword to attack, but as he swung into the fog, her form scattered along with the smoke. Finn coughed, attempting to blow the remainder of the fog out of his face.

"See ya 'round." Her voice softly echoed, fading away into the forest with the last wisps of the haze.

With wide eyes he surveyed his surroundings, gripping his sword a little tighter. _Where did she-_

Hearing rustling from the bush behind him, Finn quickly turned around and raised his sword in front of him. Gripping the hilt with both hands, he growled out, "Show yourself!"

Jumping out from behind a nearby bush with his paws raised, Jake tiredly huffed out, "Finn, buddy!"

Realizing who it was, Finn immediately relaxed, and lowered his weapon.

Exhausted from all the running, Jake trudged over and plopped down on the ground next to Finn. "So... Where is she? Thought you said you found her." Jake said breathlessly.

"I, uh, yeah. I did." Finn started, the crease deepening between his brows. Jake watched his brother's eyes become unfocused as he tried to recall the details of his latest encounter. "But she disappeared. Said her name was Shadow or whatever." Finn shook his head to rid himself of the girl's image and sheathed his sword with practiced ease.

Jake gasped and nearly gave himself whiplash at how fast his head turned back towards his brother. "What!?" Jake exclaimed. "The Shadow Witch was the thief?"

Finn met Jake's eyes, confusion written all over his face. "Shadow… Witch?" Finn rolled his eyes after a moment and smacked a hand on his forehead. "She was a witch." Finn sighed. "Man…"

"Dude, I was just talking about this a couple days ago." Jake pursed his lips, giving his brother a look of annoyance. He put his hands on his hips in his best scolding impersonation of Princess Bubblegum.

Finn ducked his head. "Yeah, sorry dude, but I wasn't really-"

"Listening. Yeah, yeah." Jake cut him off, then shook his head. This wasn't the first time Finn had tuned out what he was saying, and it wouldn't be the last. Sparing another glance at his brother, Jake could tell Finn felt bad. _Ah, well..._

"Look," Jake put his paw up to get Finn's attention, "I'll tell you again because it's necessary…" Jake began, "and it's also pretty juicy gossip." He added with a waggle of his brows.

"I heard from the Ice King-"

Finn was about to interrupt, but Jake just shushed him and continued "-that there was a new magic user on the block! Seems this 'Shadow Witch' is making a name for herself in the thief underworld. She's good, too. Sneaks around right under your nose, and vanishes in the blink of an eye!" Jake finished with his arms in the air, his body wiggling furiously. "What'dya think of that?"

"Huh." Finn said simply, putting his hands on his hips. He paused for a second in thought before asking, "When did you start hanging out with the IK?"

"That's all you're taking from this?" Jake retracted himself and hopped up, spreading his arms wide.

Finn considered what his brother had told him for a moment. "Well, it's not _too_ big a deal. We fight wizards all the time, man." Finn shrugged a shoulder, and turned around, starting his trek back to the Candy Kingdom.

"Come on, Jake! We gotta go tell PB about this new witch and see what she wants to do about her."

Jake huffed out a resigned "fine," before walking after his brother. "You just don't appreciate good gossip." Jake muttered under his breath.

Finn chuckled, then lifted his arms above his head, stretching out his back. "I guess. Her powers were kinda cool, though."

He dropped his arms down to his sides and thought back to when she told him her name.

 _And she did have a pretty smile..._ Finn thought, gazing up at the sparkling, crescent moon.

* * *

At the edge of the cotton candy forest, a dark cloud of smoke appeared and started to take a humanoid form.

Her head being the first to solidify, Shadow sighed deeply as the rest of her body came into being. Tendrils of blue fog slowly coming off her tan skin until it dissipated into the brisk night air.

 _Glob, that was a close call._ Shadow hunched over, hands on her knees, taking in a few deep breaths. She thought she was tired before, now she was ready to just lay down on the soft, green grass and pass out.

 _No. No time for that. Gotta get back._ Taking in one last deep breath, she stood up straight, slung her ratty bag over her shoulder, and begun her tedious walk home.

* * *

She kicked her front door open with a huff. It had been quite the journey to her snug, little cottage. Shadow's feet felt like lead, and she could feel the beginnings of an awful headache coming on. Gently knocking the door closed with her hip, she took a few more steps into her home and kicked off her boots. She shrugged off her bag and tossed it on a nearby old chair.

 _I'll take him the dumb ruby later._ Dragging her feet, she made the short trek to her bedroom.

Seeing her comfy looking bed put a little spring back into her step. Her pace hastened just the tiniest bit, and just as the front of her shins hit the edge of her bed, she flung herself onto the soft comforter. Shadow buried her face in the welcoming pillows, taking in their familiar and comforting scent.

She let out a happy sigh. _Good to be home._

She rolled lazily onto her back, then rested her hands on her stomach. Staring up at the ceiling, she began recalling the events of the day. _Sneaking into the castle, stealing the ruby, getting caught, running from the shapeshifting dog and..._ She slammed her eyes shut, and shook her head.

"Ugh!" Annoyed, she started tapping her index finger.

Shadow had only ever heard about him from other people. Rumors, mostly. Some said he was a nuisance, a pain. Others said he was strong, a great fighter, a hero. That he traveled around seeking adventure with his brother, Jake. She once heard he was a knight for the princess of the candy people. Shadow honestly didn't really care. As long as she was quiet and kept to herself, and he never bothered her; it was fine.

 _But now..._ She grimaced. With how things went down that night, she probably had a warrant out for her head.

"Glob darn it." She murmured.

Too exhausted to twitch any longer, she allowed her eyes to finally rest. The gentle sound of the tree branches rustling against her tiny cottage calmed her mind. The wind began to pick up. Autumn was beginning to show that it was finally here. The air was getting colder, and the leaves were starting to turn the most beautiful sunset orange.

Letting out a long, tired breath, Shadow began to feel herself drifting off. Before sleep could completely envelop her, she again recalled the events that happened a few hours prior.

 _...Stealing the ruby, getting caught, running from Jake the Dog and... Finn the Human._ She quietly hummed, a ghost of a smile creeping its way to her face.

 _He had such beautiful eyes._ She hazily thought, just as her consciousness fully faded away.

* * *

 **A/N:**

I hope I portrayed the characters personalities correctly. Writing Finn and Jake was a ton of fun. Can't wait to write for the other characters.

I'd like to give a shoutout to my beta, GlitterGhoulGang. She was a huge help. Thank you so much!

Reviews are always appreciated ((:

 **to the anon reviewer:** oh, well then i'm glad you were hella bored then lol. your detailed review means a lot to me, for real. and i am heading more into a romance-y type relationship with them, but like, they're still gonna have that bro feel. i'm all for slow burns. actually, writing for finn and jake was pretty easy for me bc my personality is like a mix of theirs. what's gonna be a real pain is writing for pb :\\\\\ oh wow, i'm so happy you like shadow's character! i know, i cringe at her name sometimes too lmao. but, i wanted it to be as similar to the show as possible, ya know? and also, it's not her real name (wink wink). kinda like how flame princess goes by just that (or fp), and not phoebe. same with pb and many others.

haha i couldn't help myself when it came to that cliche. sometimes you just gotta.

and i'm not exactly sure what flaw you mean, sorry. i did see a mistake in that sentence tho regarding a letter that was capitalized and shouldn't have been.

again, thanks for reviewing!


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